Definition/Theory (Class Summary)


3D computer graphics are three-dimensional representations of data.

3D computer graphics creation falls into three basic phases:

  • 3D modeling – the process of forming a computer model of an object's shape
  • Layout and animation – the motion and placement of objects within a scene
  • 3D rendering – the computer calculations that, based on light placement, surface types, and other qualities, generate the image


One of the first displays of computer animation was Futureworld (1976), which included an animation of a human face and a hand—produced by Ed Catmull and Fred Parke at the University of California.



News Articles


TED 2013: SpaceTop 3D see-through computer revealed
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21603323

A Timeline of CGI Animation
http://design.osu.edu/carlson/history/timeline.html#1960



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